Good for them. I went to Washington DC last month and saw the WW2 and Vietnam Memorials for the first time. I was bawling like a baby at both of them. Seeing all the old vets looking for their friends' names on the wall, or the ones being pushed around in wheelchairs by the WW2 memorial, really makes you appreciate what those folks went through and how many died during their service.

I was lucky enough to know and interview a couple of veterans in the late 90's. These guys are gone now. The videos here were donated to the Smithsonian project that collects interviews and memories of veterans. The coolest find was a collection of color 8mm films of soldiers and sailors from the town I live in (106 people in all) that I compiled and had narrated by a couple of veterans and a Korean war vet (my Dad) who tell stories and identifies the people in the movies. (links goe to Youtube)LinkLink

My godfather was Army Air Corps in WWII. He didn't say much to the adults in his life about his experiences but he talked to my brother and I. I'm not ashamed to say that I wept at the WWII Memorial and then explained it all to my son and his classmates.

olddeegee:I was lucky enough to know and interview a couple of veterans in the late 90's. These guys are gone now. The videos here were donated to the Smithsonian project that collects interviews and memories of veterans. The coolest find was a collection of color 8mm films of soldiers and sailors from the town I live in (106 people in all) that I compiled and had narrated by a couple of veterans and a Korean war vet (my Dad) who tell stories and identifies the people in the movies. (links goe to Youtube)

I wish I would have recorded the conversations I had with a WWII vet he had great stories that will never make it into a documentary, such as driving and racing Jeep inside the Palace of Versailles visiting brothels in Paris oh and being part of a tank crew on Omaha beach.

I hope to take my Grandfather to DC, at some time, soon- He served on the USS Birmingham in the big one in both theaters ( he gave me a piece of her deck when i met him ) and was wounded twice. He then had the brilliant idea to join the Army so he could serve in Korea. Old tough guy is ,well, old tough guy .I just wish we had a rosie the riveter museum also - my adoptive mom built aircraft for both ww2 and korea .Never forget the GREATEST generation folks. For most of us, sacrafice is not having another beer. For them- it was gas rationing, tire rationing, and buying war bonds.

olddeegee:I was lucky enough to know and interview a couple of veterans in the late 90's. These guys are gone now. The videos here were donated to the Smithsonian project that collects interviews and memories of veterans. The coolest find was a collection of color 8mm films of soldiers and sailors from the town I live in (106 people in all) that I compiled and had narrated by a couple of veterans and a Korean war vet (my Dad) who tell stories and identifies the people in the movies. (links goe to Youtube)LinkLink

And a friend interviews in a video I directed.Link

Great article. Also, I recently found out that an uncle of mine was an orderly for Bull Halsey for 2 years in the war (He says he was an a**hole). Trying to set up an interview. Gotta do it soon.

I knew a WWII vet a decade or so back in my church choir. He was an infantryman who went through normandy and france with the army. He didn't talk about it much, but I can remember a story he told once about attending an impromptu mass one sunday in a bombed-out church in france and having a damaged part of the choir loft collapse onto him and his buddies. He was banged up good and buried for a while, but shrugged it right off and went back to marching (talked about it like it was nothing, too). He was a tough guy - you could tell he was old, but he still came to mass every sunday (and sang strongly), did everything for himself, and generally still had plenty of get-up-and-go both mentally and physically (presumably because of the overwhelming testosterone supply). He's gone now; I wish I had spent more time talking to him while I had the chance.

My Grandfather who is 91 is the last remaining WWII vet in our family. He was a tank commander who fought Rommel in Africa and then moved up the Italian boot. he fought at Monte Casino and was at the liberation of Rome. Honor flights would be cool for him but these days he just likes to sit on his front porch and feed the squirrels and the hummingbirds. He rarely talks about the war but recently he asked my Dad if he could get him a documentary of Monte Casino. These guys are going fast. If you like history try to talk to them if you get the chance.

I wonder how many of these Wisconsin Veterans got to be groped by the TSA before boarding? You know, all in the name of protecting their freedom. These are the real heroes here. The TSA. They do a dirty job. But someone has to. They need a memorial, also. Maybe one with the TSA storming up the grassy knoll to plant the American Flag on Senator Everett Dirksen's grave in Springfield while Homer Simpson looks on approvingly. God bless the TSA. To hell with these old farts!

Matthew Keene:I wonder how many of these Wisconsin Veterans got to be groped by the TSA before boarding? You know, all in the name of protecting their freedom. These are the real heroes here. The TSA. They do a dirty job. But someone has to. They need a memorial, also. Maybe one with the TSA storming up the grassy knoll to plant the American Flag on Senator Everett Dirksen's grave in Springfield while Homer Simpson looks on approvingly. God bless the TSA. To hell with these old farts!

Igor Jakovsky:My Grandfather who is 91 is the last remaining WWII vet in our family. He was a tank commander who fought Rommel in Africa and then moved up the Italian boot. he fought at Monte Casino and was at the liberation of Rome. Honor flights would be cool for him but these days he just likes to sit on his front porch and feed the squirrels and the hummingbirds. He rarely talks about the war but recently he asked my Dad if he could get him a documentary of Monte Casino. These guys are going fast. If you like history try to talk to them if you get the chance.

I used to go to classic air shows quite a bit and made it a point to talk to the aircrews and thank them for their amazing service. Without it, my life would have turned out quite a bit different. My grandparents (and parents as infants and toddlers) were at the receiving end of the allied bombers. They all survived the war. One of my grandfathers was part of Operation Weserübung in Norway, which makes for interesting conversations here in the U.S.

alienated:I hope to take my Grandfather to DC, at some time, soon- He served on the USS Birmingham in the big one in both theaters ( he gave me a piece of her deck when i met him ) and was wounded twice. He then had the brilliant idea to join the Army so he could serve in Korea. Old tough guy is ,well, old tough guy .I just wish we had a rosie the riveter museum also - my adoptive mom built aircraft for both ww2 and korea .Never forget the GREATEST generation folks. For most of us, sacrafice is not having another beer. For them- it was gas rationing, tire rationing, and buying war bonds.

I helped on one of the honor flights here in Tennessee, it's really amazing how much respect the old vets got shown by people. When the plane came in to DC they had 2 fire trucks make an arch of water for the plane to pass through. We've stopped doing them now, chiefly because we've taken pretty much everyone who can go.

I really recommend helping out, these old men who've largely been forgotten by the world deserve some recognition.

Anderson's Pooper:My godfather was Army Air Corps in WWII. He didn't say much to the adults in his life about his experiences but he talked to my brother and I. I'm not ashamed to say that I wept at the WWII Memorial and then explained it all to my son and his classmates.

My grandfather was in the Army Air Corps as well. His service as a Portuguese translator gained him his citizenship. At the time, I believe the Army Air Corps was the only branch that accepted non-citizens.

He died in April 2001, but was so excited to hear that there was going to be a memorial built to his generation. When I finally went to see the memorial, I also cried at seeing all the wheelchair-bound vets being escorted. I wanted to hug all of them to thank them for their service to try and make up for the fact I couldn't do the same for my grandfather.